Sewage spill into Lake Quinsigamond closes Route 9 area for swimming

Tuesday

Jul 2, 2013 at 9:08 PMJul 2, 2013 at 10:22 PM

By Linda Bock, TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

WORCESTER — City health officials are again advising people not to go into the water in the area of Lake Quinsigamond just south of the Route 9 bridge until further notice because of a sewer overflow on Monday.

City officials said the sewer overflowed into Lake Quinsigamond between 12:15 and 1:15 p.m. Monday near 83 Lake Ave.

Swimmers can get sick if they ingest bacteria and chemicals that spilled into the water, according to health officials.

A health advisory for Lake Quinsigamond south of the Route 9 bridge had just been lifted on June 17.

The first advisory, issued June 8, stemmed from the overflow of a sewer into a drain line that emptied into the lake near 85 Lake Ave. Health officials had recommended that people not use the area for fishing, boating and bathing because of bacteria and chemicals in the overflow.

The two incidences were totally unrelated, according to city officials, with completely different causes.

The June incident happened when the sewer system was overwhelmed during heavy rain and sewage spilled into the drainage.

The incident Monday was caused by mechanical failure in the pump station, according to Matthew J. Labovites, assistant commissioner of operations for the city's Department of Public Works. He said though the problem was quickly rectified, the department is still investigating to determine the exact cause.

"I am very confident that we will never have this type of mechanical failure again," he said.